rating:
super good!
★★★★★I've compiled Orkidea's commentary on the tracks on this single blog post so you won't have to read the whole 23 pages of forums posts (unless you really want to). scroll down after the tracklist.
1. Rober Miles: Children (Lowland orchestral version)
2. Philip Glass Metamorphosis: Metamorphosis Five
3. Thrillseekers: Synaesthesia (Lowland orchestral version)
4. Thomas Newman: Any Other Name
5. Way Out West: Mindcircus (Lowland orchestral version)
6. Philip Glass: Truman Sleeps
7. BT: Flaming June (Lowland orchestral version)
8. Yann Tiersen: Comptine d'un autre été - L'après-midi
9. Greece 2000: Café del Mar (Lowland orchestral version)
10. Michael Nyman: The Heart Asks Pleasure First / The Promise
11. Chicane: Theme from Harry's Game (Saltwater) (Lowland orchestral version)
12. Wim Mertens: Close Cover
13. Aalto: Rush (Lowland orchestral version)
14. Cosmic Baby: Thinking About Myself
15. Binary Finary: 1998 (Lowland orchestral version)
16. Wim Mertens: Struggle for Pleasure
17. Slusnik Luna: Sun (Lowland orchestral version)
1. Rober Miles: Children (Lowland orchestral version)
Petri "Lowland" Alanko made special piano/orchestral versions for our Club Unity's 10th anniversary back in 2006. They ended up being released on Armada and if you haven't heard this amazing album I highly recommend to check it out. It's amazing to hear all these classic tracks in this form. The pure musical emotion shines through even without the beats.
2. Philip Glass: Metamorphosis: Metamorphosis Five
Philip Glass is the man we can thank for many of the musical foundations of trance music as people like Oliver Lieb and Cosmic Baby rate him as their key inspiration in early 90s with his arpeggiated piano pieces.
3. Thrillseekers: Synesthesia (Lowland orchestral version)
Another Lowland intepretation. This time remaking Thrillseekers late 90s classic Synesthesia. It's nice to see how something so simple can be so effective, emotional and deep at the same time. Timeless.
4. Thomas Newman: Any Other Name
Key piece from Thomas Newman's score for 'American Beauty' film. Mr. Newman really knows how to build simple yet so emotive and catchy pieces. And the sound of his piano is probably the softest one around.
5. Way Out West: Mindcircus
Nick Warren and Jody Wisteroff at their poppiest are getting the Lowland treatment here. The original was one of the highlights of the 'Intensify' album and even reached the UK singles chart #39. Classic.
6. Philip Glass: Truman Sleeps
Philip Glass piece which was included on the Truman Show movie. Not sure if this was actually written for the film but amazing two minutes of music never the less. Philip Glass really is one of my alltime musical heroes. Highly recommended to anyone who is into trance and classical music.
7. BT: Flaming June (Lowland orchestral version)
Listening to this together with BT during a car drive to the gig venue in Helsinki in April 2009 was a moment I will never forget. He is truly special person with AMAZING positive energy in him. And Flaming June is the finest of his many many great musical moments.
8. Yann Tiersen Comptine d'un autre été - L'après-midi
One of the key themes from the Amelie film. I used this Yann Tiersen's piece in a fashion show last year here in Finland and I've been wanting to play it in a set ever since. If you find more emotional music than this, please let me know;)
9. Three Drives: Greece 2000 (Lowland orchestral version)
Yet another Lowland version. Here is link to the full album in iTunes: Classical Trancelations by Lowland -
Download Classical Trancelations on iTunes. Perfect "introduction to trance music" xmas gift to any friend/partner you want to convince of the beauty in trance music;)
10. Michael Nyman: The Heart Asks Pleasure First / The Promise
Theme music from the movie 'Piano'. Emotionally super charged music. Perhaps Michael Nyman's finest moment until today and something that will surely stand the test of the times for centuries to come. Is this trance?
11. Clannad: Theme from Harry's Game (Saltwater) (Lowland orchestral version)
Nice to see how music can travel from one piece to another and yet another, transforming from song made for TV series in 1982, being sampled by Chicane in 1999 and now re-living once again in another form by Lowland. Some people question remixing and remaking, but with examples like this I think sometimes it's all :D
12. Wim Mertens: Close Cover
I heard this one first time on one of Jose Padilla's (of Cafe del Mar Ibiza fame) legendary mix CDs and been in love ever since. And if your ever looking for good chill out CDs/mixes, Jose will always deliver. I highly recommend checking out his Mixcloud sessions. For example this is pure bliss:
Jose Padilla - Ibiza Classic Sunset by Jose Padilla | Mixcloud - Re-think radio13. Aalto: Rush (Lowland orchestral version)
Lowland's version of the Super8 & Orkidea remix of Aalto's Rush. Lowland said that the ending of this version kinda took over Brilliant stuff in it's all Hollywood hugeness.
14. Cosmic Baby: Thinking About Myself
Cosmic Baby was the person responsible for many of genre defining pieces of trance music back in 1992/1993 when he was recording on Berlin based MFS Records. Another old school name to check out and this was the title trance from his 1993 album where (IMHO) you can hear influences of Wim Mertens and Philip Glass clearly.
15. Binary Finary: 1998 (Lowland orchestral version)
16. Wim Mertens Struggle for Pleasure
Sounds familiar? The stiry behind Energy 52' Cafe del Mar was that DJ Kid Paul went to Ibiza in 1992 and heard a DJ (most likely Jose Padilla) play this piece during sunset in Cafe del Mar (a sunset bar in San Antonio in Ibiza). Kid Paul came back totally electrified, played the track to Cosmic Baby and then they made some history by writing 'Cafe del Mar'.
17. Slusnik Luna: Sun
The grand daddy of all finnish trance tracks: Slusnik Luna's 'Sun'. Niko from Slusnik Luna made first version of this and brought it to our summer Sunday club 'Sun' in Helsinki in 1999. I played it that night as encore without even listening to it first because my trust in these guys' skills is endless. But I was completely blown aways by the track. So much that we set up a label to release it. It caused major hype with everybody playing it and all the big labels wanting to sign it. It went on to UK singles chart Top 40 in August 2000 and holds a firm position as one of my alltime fave tracks.
20:00 doors open
